Aug 21, 2013 09:13 AM EDT By Staff Reporter, UniversityHerald Reporter

In an attempt to promote healthy lifestyle within the campus, University of Colorado (CU), Boulder campus has designated 25 smoking areas. The university officials are planning on phasing them too, starting December 2013.

"Welcome to our smoke free campus," reads a message on the CU website. "For your health and the health of our community, thank you for not smoking on the CU-Boulder campus."

Malinda Miller-Huey, a campus spokeswoman said that students and employees found guilty of violating the rule will probably be referred to the Office of Student Conduct and supervisors respectively.Visitors will be asked to leave the campus for not following the rules.

"There will not be ticketing, it's going to be really a community enforcement. It is a violation of the student code of conduct, so if there was repeated violations they would be referred to the student conduct board," said Miller-Huey. "We think it's our responsibility, to protect the campus community. There are long term effects from smoking and also second hand smoke.

Colorado University is only the second institution to ban smoking of all substances in the Pac-12 (behind University of Oregon) and among CU's four campuses (behind the Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora). 

Jessica Kaminsky, a Ph.D. student pursuing civil engineering supported the ban.

"You'd get a blast of smoke when you'd walk over by the building entrances," she said.

Jonathan Diels, a 25-year-old visitor to the campus said that smokers need to keep in mind the concerns of other people who dislike second-hand smoke.

In February, Chancellor Phil DiStefano gave a nod to the campus's decision to go smoke free.

Since the approval, Facilities Management has removed more than 100 smoking urns on the campus; placed no-smoking signs encouraging smokers to make use of the resources to help them quit the habit. They have organised several workshops, support groups and individual counselling sessions as well.

In 2012, the CU Student Government had to take back a resolution of an all-out tobacco ban. Students criticized the resolution by saying that it would be risky for them to walk out of campus to smoke cigarettes late at night. More than 1,100 college campuses throughout the country have introduced similar policies.

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